Of Potatoes and Journeys
by LadyLight0105
Summary: Wherein NASA decides to send another doctor on board the Hermes on their mission to rescue Mark Watney. OC/Watney
1. Chapter 1

Venkat Kapoor sighed as he leaned back on to his chair—problems just kept arising everywhere it seemed. He looked at the team of doctors in front of him, Mitch Henderson at on his left while on his right, JPL's Bruce Ng was on the television, perched on his own desk.

He turned to the JPL director. "Is it possible? Can the booster handle the extra weight? Is there even space for another person?"

"We have the vehicle ready for Ares IV, we could take some of it apart and attach it to the booster along with the supplies…" Bruce looked down at his paper, wrote some things and looked up. "It can be done. We'd need to add supplies for another person, then a bit more for redundancy. Then of course, there would be the medical supplies needed, but that should take up too much space since there still should be enough on Hermes. The fuel on the Taiyang Shen was meant to reach Mars, but since we'll be using it for a resupply near Earth, if we tweak it slightly, then it is possible to add more load."

Teddy looked down, sighing. "We can't risk another person."

"If we don't, then Mark Watney's rescue will be in vain—he'll die before he can even get back to Earth." Mitch looked at Teddy, his jaw clenched slightly. "We need to send another doctor."

Annie Montrose was silent, already coming up with a statement. Mark Watney was going to need all the medical help he could get on the 211 days trip back home, and Flight Surgeon Chris Beck would not be enough.

Teddy spoke after a moment of poignant silence. His gaze swept across the group of doctors, and then to Mitch and Venkat. "If we did this, it needs to be completely voluntary."

Mitch nodded. "Of course. But astronauts are a noble bunch, they wouldn't hesitate."

"Is there anyone even qualified at this point?" Teddy said. "With the proper astronaut training and medical expertise."

Mitch smiled, glancing at Venkat for a moment. "I've got just the person."

* * *

Eleanora Hutchison, or Eli, walked the corridors of NASA, heading to the conference room she had been told to head to immediately. She had been at home, reading and watching some reruns of Hannibal. She had rounds in a couple of hours at a hospital nearby, and she hoped that the meeting she was being called into wouldn't take too much time. At the moment, Eli couldn't fathom what could possibly be the reason for this.

For the past couple of months, NASA had been completely focused on bringing Mark Watney home, and everything else pretty much fell into the background. Astronaut training, however, did still continue, but talks of the Ares 4 and 5 missions were put on hold, at least until after Mark Watney came home. In a little over a month, the Hermes would be doing the gravity assist and would be heading back to Mars to intercept with Watney.

She approached the door, raising her hand to gently but firmly knock on the door before entering. Venkat Kapoor sat on the end closer to the television, beside him was Mitch Henderson, and beside him was Annie Montrose. Across from them were two men and one woman, all wearing business attire. Her gaze then settled on Teddy Sanders who was looking out the window of the conference room, which faced the parking lot and a small park.

Eli looked at Venkat, her usual stoic expression on. "Good afternoon, sir." She stepped into the room, closing the door behind her. She stood up straight, hands linked in front of her and her feet shoulder width apart.

Mitch Henderson stood up. "Everyone, as you may know, this is Eli Hutchison, who's participating on the Ares IV mission." He went around the table, coming up to shake her hand, as everyone in the room ended up doing.

"The flight surgeon for Ares 4, correct?" Teddy Sanders asked as he went back to his own seat.

"Yes, sir." Eli nodded, resuming her previous position.

Venkat Kapoor spoke next. "Can you tell us about your training? Academically speaking until now?"

Eli's face contorted to one of confusion for just a moment before she quickly recovered. "I obtained my bachelor's degree at the University of Pennsylvania, then my medical's at Harvard University, going on to intern and become a resident at…" She expounded on her studies, talking about her specialty in trauma surgery, emergency medicine and nutrition. Her training at NASA included aerospace medicine, just like Flight Surgeon for Ares 3, Chris Beck.

Eli had no idea what was going on—she was confused. The ensuing questions they threw at her all sounded like… like this was a job interview. She felt as if she had to pitch herself to the whole room.

"Alright, thanks, Eli," Mitch said, smiling kindly at her. "Could you wait outside please? And let Dr. Shields in while you're at it."

Eli simply nodded as she did what she was told. She stepped outside to see the aforementioned Ares missions' flight psychologist in the hallway. Eli motioned for Dr. Shields to enter the room, and she smiled and nodded as she entered, closing the door behind her.

Eli stood there, stunned and confused at what just occurred.

That was… odd.

* * *

"Will she be agreeable to the team?" Teddy asked Irene Shields, who now sat beside the medical doctors. "Personality conflicts? How well does she handle stress?" He paused before continuing with the most important question. " _Can she make the trip?_ "

Irene looked at her charts and folders. "Eli's worked under high stress conditions, since she's gone to high conflict areas, treating military and civilian personnel. She's intelligent, and can be quite resourceful with materials on hand. She exhibits a flexibility in her practice." She paused, scanning through a page. "Compatibility-wise, she should be able to fit into the social dynamics of the crew—she's quiet and stoic, and is the type to support what or who she believes is right."

"Won't her quietness be an obstacle to communication?"

Irene shook her head. "At first it was perceived as so, but when we observed her over a longer period of time…"

The NASA psychologist expounded on the Ares 4 flight surgeon, making sure to also speak about her other quirks. What kept her stable, and what made her angry.

"Any perceived personality conflicts? Why wasn't she chosen for Ares 3 if she's been here just as long as Chris Beck?"

Irene nodded. "She was not chosen because she's methodical, reserved and can be critical when asked. The one she'd most likely have conflicts with is Mark Watney—but if her goal is to treat him, she should do alright."

Teddy made eye-contact with both Mitch and Venkat. Eli Hutchison was not as well trained as the Ares III crew. If they were to do this, she would just have a little less than a month for the intensive training, and even less than that to be prepared. This was a gamble.

They asked Irene more questions, and once satisfied with the answers, they once again called Eli in.

* * *

Eli now stood at the other end of the table, right in front of the television as she faced the higher-ups of NASA, who could easily fire her, or worse scrap her from the Ares IV mission entirely. A trickle of nervousness had seeped into her while she had waited in the hallway, but she reminded herself that this was NASA, and that they were logical and perfectly reasonable. With the reminder that this was most probably just a checkup on the Ares 4 crew, Eli's nervousness shrank away. But now as she stood in front of the high ranks, she couldn't help but feel it come back.

"Ms. Hutchison, I'm sure you're aware that we've decided to send the Hermes back to Mars to intercept with Mark Watney," the Director of NASA started.

Eli answered immediately. "Yes, sir." But what exactly did that have to do with Eli?

Teddy then looked at the group of people beside Dr. Shields, the group of doctors. The man nearest to her decided to speak. "By the time of the rescue, Mark Watney would've been in Mars for eighteen months, medical issues are simply a matter of fact. He most likely has malnutrition, scurvy, low bone density, several possible heart conditions…" as he continued the medical team's assessment, Eli found herself nodding.

Living on Mars took a toll on the human body, even with sufficient supplies, NASA wouldn't risk more than 31 sols on the surface of Mars, it just wasn't good for the body. In Mark Watney's case, Eli couldn't even begin to fathom the psychological trauma a man in near isolation would develop.

After the medical assessment, Venkat Kapoor spoke up. "So, we've decided to send another doctor over."

Eli immediately realized what she was here for.

At the understanding that crossed Eli's face, Venkat continued. "The mission requires you 533 days in space. There isn't much need for science experiments, but once Mark Watney has been rescued, you are tasked to meticulously log his condition for further studies on the effect of space travel and the stay on Mars on the human body. After the intercept with Mars, your main priority is getting him healthy enough for descent into Earth gravity."

There were a few moments of silence before she answered. "Sir, Chris Beck is one of the most capable flight surgeons I have met, and a damn great doctor. I can't say I completely understand why a secondary flight surgeon is needed."

"Chris Beck could use the help. You have some of what he lacks, and vice versa. Combined, your skills will provide sufficient care for Mark Watney. Together it will be both your tasks to make sure Watney will have sound constitution to make it back on Earth safely." Mitch was the one who answered. "Constant consultations with NASA will take up half the time, and we just don't have enough time for that. Watney needs optimal care, real-time."

There was a long silence, and then Teddy Sanders spoke.

"We'll need your reply by tomorrow, any later than that and it'll be too late."

Eli didn't need until tomorrow. A man needed her help. Outer space or not, her mind was decided. "I'll go."

"You have until tomorrow, 9 A.M. to think through your decision," Teddy Sanders said as he stood up. "If your decision stands, then your crash course on intensive training begins tomorrow."

The next morning, Eleanora Hutchison arrived on time and in her training gear.

* * *

A/N: Hello! Well, this is one of _those_ fanfics. I was really interested in looking into the return journey home, but I also wanted to add some stuff to it, you know? So, hear that idea is. I just watched and read The Martian, and I have to say, I'm pretty obsessed. It was beautiful, and, more importantly, scientifically accurate, which is very, very important to me, you know? This fic, for the most part, will try to be as scientifically accurate as possible, I guess, except for this part because I am not a physicist nor do I work for NASA (ha. I wish). Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this fic!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Good day! So, here's the next chapter :) Thank you so much for those that reviewed, it means so much!

* * *

"Commander, there's a video message from CAPCOM." Beth Johanssen said over the mic. "Addressed to you."

Melissa Lewis looked at Johanssen, who was at her station and nodded. "I'll take it in my quarters." The Commander quickly stood and made her way to the ladder, going up, grabbing a handle and transferring to another ladder that led to the crew's quarters. As she slid down, she quickly had to grip on to the ladder as centripetal force made its power known to her and she had to use the last couple of rungs to make it.

Once in her quarters, she sat on the chair in front of the monitor and said unto her mic. "Put it through."

Immediately, the face of Mitch Henderson and Venkat Kapoor appeared on the screen. They were close enough to Earth that communication had just about a two-minute delay. Henderson wore the headset. "Good day, Commander Lewis. It's Mitch Henderson, and beside me is Venkat Kapoor, if the video isn't clear. Anyway, the medical team here has assessed Mark Watney's condition given Mars' atmosphere and the circumstances regarding his current situation. In response to that report, we've decided to add to your crew members."

Melissa's eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she drew herself nearer to the monitor, sliding to the edge of the seat as she listened carefully to the message as they expounded on the reasons for the addition. Although this would mean that another life was in danger, if NASA was the one making this decision, she was sure that it was thought through.

"Her name is Eleanora Hutchison, and she's the Flight Surgeon for Ares 4. We'll be establishing a link soon to build rapport so that integration will be easier." Mitch paused, then continued as if he remembered something. "Oh, right, we also sent you her file. Godspeed, Commander."

* * *

"…and so she'll be a part of this crew for 533 days. I trust you'll all make her feel welcome," Melissa smiled as she flashed Hutchison's file on the screen in the Rec room. "Her name's Eleanora Hutchison, file name says she's called Eli. Flight surgeon, EVA specialist and the biochemist of the Ares 4 mission."

The crew's eyes flickered to Chris for a moment, and the doctor simply looked at the screen with Hutchison's file. Of course, Chris felt as if NASA was disregarding his abilities, and he let it made known with a frown.

Melissa, ever the observant commander, noticed it quickly. She'd sort that out in a bit.

"Beck, you know her?" The Commander asked as she placed the remote down on the table in front of her.

They were in the Rec, seated around the table—the glaring emptiness of the sixth chair not nearly as apparent as the past couple of months.

Chris exhaled a breath. "Yeah, we had parts of our EVA and aerospace medicine training together, we were chosen two batches apart." He paused, remembering the tall and lean doctor. He was nodding slowly. "She's, uh, a good choice. Has a master's degree in both nutrition and biochemistry." All Ares missions astronauts were exceptionally intelligent and well-studied, but now that he saw her file, he was fairly surprised by how relatively young she was, she was just a little older than Johanssen.

"Okay. I get it and everything, but logistically speaking, there is a problem here," Beth spoke. "How are we going to fit seven people on a ship designed for six?" Aside from that, everything was kind of made for six people—their dining table had specifically six chairs. The command room had six chairs as well. An even number was just easier to deal with, easier to balance.

Melissa nodded. "NASA hasn't specifically said anything about that, so I assume they leave that to us."

Rick leaned back on his chair, grinning. "And, luckily, we're among the smartest people in the world."

Melissa leaned forward on her chair, her elbows on the table. "On the trip back to Mars, she'll be in Watney's room. So we have about nine months to figure out sleeping arrangements," Melissa said.

"What about science experiments, Commander?" Alexander asked.

Melissa shook her head. "In general, because of our extended stay, NASA doesn't really have any experiments scheduled. However, you all can go ahead and continue to log your experiments." Doing nothing was maddening, and they'd all need to be kept occupied by some sort of routine or task. In fact, she'd go ahead and ask NASA for a schedule.

After a few moments of silence, wherein the crew absorbed the information, Melissa once more spoke up. "They'll be establishing a communication link soon, most likely a video communication to start building rapport. I'd imagine that would be a routine until we have Hutchison on board." She scanned each of them, making eye-contact. Once she went full circle, she smiled. "Alright, you can go back to your private times."

The crew all stood, all making their way to the ladder. It was just about time for them to head to sleep.

"Beck, can I talk to you for a moment?" Melissa said, closing the screen, then placing the remote securely back in its hold by the screen.

Obediently, Chris hung back, and he and the Commander waited until the crew all left. The Commander looked him in the eye.

"I know you're feeling wronged, but they aren't doubting your abilities here, Chris. Nobody is." Melissa gaze was sharp. "We all just need to acknowledge that Mark needs more help than we can give. With Watney's foreseen condition, the trip home is dangerous and potentially fatal."

Chris sighed as he leaned his head back, momentarily, pressing the heels of his hands to his eyes, then dragging them down his face. He then looked at the Commander again. "I do get it, Commander. It's just an initial reaction, I guess."

Melissa nodded. "I understand the frustration, Beck. Just remember not to hold on to that."

Chris smiled. "I won't, Commander." He looked at the glass window momentarily, showing the vast vacuum of space outside. "I was actually just thinking of Watney's condition, and I think NASA's right to send another doctor. He'll need all the real-time, actual care." He chuckled lightly, shaking his head. "Mars is a shit-place to get stranded in."

The Commander let out a small laugh, shaking her head as she looked down. Once she looked up a moment later, her smile was still in place. "Mark's condition will be yours and Hutchison's top priority. I trust any personal conflicts won't get in the way?"

"Yes, Commander," the flight surgeon answered resolutely. She didn't really need to remind him.

"Good," Melissa said. She then jerked her head towards the stairs. "Now, off with you."

* * *

"Mother of God," Eli whispered as she splashed water on her face with the bottle Wesley, the NASA assigned trainer, gave her.

She was now doing 10 kilometer runs every 2 days, and maybe she was exaggerating, but she was pretty sure she was going to explode soon. It wasn't the runs that were exhausting, it was centrifuge, the vacuum, and the simulations—the runs were the easy part. In about two hours, after an ice bath, she was going to don an EVA suit and go ahead into the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL), which was basically scuba diving with an EVA suit.

After an initial physical, they had quickly flown her to Johnson Space Center to begin the intense training. Her past couple of days was filled with 10 kilometer runs, NBL simulations, aerospace medicine drills, centrifuge rides, psych meetings and video communication with the Ares 3 crew. The night was the weirdest, and yet slightly most comforting of all.

The room they had placed her in was completely silent—nothing could be heard from the outside. She'd placed her ear on the door for several minutes once she was unnerved enough. The vent on the ceiling was absolutely silent. When she'd brought it up in a psych meeting on the third day, they'd told her it was so that she'd get used to the silence of space—which made sense. So on the fourth night, she saw the silence as a slight comfort. One of the tests she was missing in her cram intensive training was the isolation test, which they just didn't have time for.

"Come on, doc, Kira's ready for your ice bath," Wesley ordered, handing her another bottle of water, which she drank in one go.

Eli nodded, resigned to her training—complaining was going to do nothing but waste the precious air she was trying to get back into her lungs right now. Might as well savor the stuff now before she had go where it was limited. The intensive training was to last three weeks, with the last couple of days before the launch devoted to letting her body rest and recover, fixing up loose ends and saying her goodbyes to her family. Then about three days before the launch, she'd be flying to China—she had to go at least three days early so that she wouldn't be tired from the trip, but with her intensive training, the flight wouldn't even be a thing.

She squealed as she entered the ice bath, eyes closed and jaw clenched. She heard the click from Kira's stopwatch, and she closed her eyes, thinking of the kind of shit Mark Watney was going through so she'd feel bad enough to be able to go through her own hell.

"Alright." Kira alerted her of the time, and helped her get out of the ice bath. The woman then handed her a bathrobe to put over her skin-tight training suit. "You have EVA training in an hour and a half. Wesley will meet you in the dining hall for a quick snack, then off to the NBL you go."

Eli nodded, letting the heat of the shower rooms—because that was where they were—warm her up. The suit would dry in a few minutes. Her dark brown hair wasn't wet because she it tied into a low bun, resting on the top of her neck—which, just a tip, was better to do because it wouldn't interfere with the headgear of an EVA suit. She switched the wet robe for a dry one so she could go out and head into the dining hall. Some of the Astronaut Candidates, or AsCans for short, looked at her in what Eli could only describe as wonder.

Annie Montrose had announced the addition to the team the very next day after they had told her, when they were sure of her decision. Her picture and some other information was released and quickly made its way to all over, so the AsCans had no trouble recognizing her. They actually even spoke to her, which was generally not unwelcome, because company was pretty awesome when intensive training was this… intense. It helped her relax, and it helped her be able to practice whatever social skills she possessed.

She spotted Wesley, the tall, bulky African-American in training gear. He was in his mid-forties, ex-military, and he was assigned to keep her fit through the intensive training.

"Here you go, doc," Wesley motioned to the shoddy-looking sandwich on a tray he was carrying. "Enough energy for the NBL."

She took it like a champ and ate away, resting then heading to the NBL after. After the NBL it would be the gym, then the centrifuge. Her days of physical exertion were interrupted by days of mental taxation, where they drilled her on aerospace medicine, doing some simulations in vacuo, and other situations. They also gave her a list of possible medical issues that would arise from Mark Watney's condition, and they gave her many things to read.

Much later, after a grueling centrifuge simulation, she sat back in her room. Getting herself to look even slightly presentable to the Ares 3 crew was such a chore, but one she went through anyway because she wanted to make a good impression—she'd be with them for a year and a half, and that time would be even longer when people hated each other. Transmission was at 8 PM Washington, DC time, so that meant 7 PM for JFC.

She had gotten back to her room near 6 PM, and by 6:30 she was ready for the transmission. She was wearing sweat pants and a hoodie, with her hair in a ponytail. She sat in front of the monitor in her room, which just had a bed, a closet, a cushioned chair with wheels and a desk, with a monitor mounted on the wall just above it. She placed the headset on and pressed the button that would tell NASA she was ready for the transmission.

Her talk with the crew started the night of her arrival, where she met the whole crew. The following nights, she spoke with them individually, one person per night, starting with the Commander, then going down the chain. Tonight was her turn to speak with Beth, and she was excited to speak to the System Operator of the Ares 3 mission. They were close in age, and, if anything, she was hoping that she'd be able to at least get close to Beth, if nobody else. NASA was requiring at least a 30-minute transmission. Though they weren't watching the videos, transmission time was being monitored.

While waiting for the transmission to begin, she decided to read and send some emails, some were from family and friends—she was required to hand over her phone—and some were from subscriptions on medical journals, regarding some papers she wrote.

* * *

Beth sat on her monitor, waiting for the signal to patch through. It was 8 PM—at least back in NASA headquarters, Washington, DC—and she was sort of excited to get to know Eli Hutchison, the newest addition to the crew. The transmission delay was less than a minute, so near real-time.

Finally, the signal was patched through and she found herself face to face with… a woman sleeping. Eli had her head leaning on the headrest of her chair, and Beth could hear the steady breathing of the doctor. Beth smiled, shaking her head as she leaned back on her chair.

Transmission time had to be at least 30 minutes. Instead of waking Eli up, Beth leaned back on her chair and took her laptop, resuming _Evil Under the Sun_ by Agatha Christie—the woman was _amazing_. Her headset was still on, and she read with the sound of Eli's breathing as her background.

She was nearing the end of her novel when she heard an "Oh, my God." Beth quickly looked up.

"I'm so sorry!" Eli apologized, her brows furrowed. "It was just supposed to be a ten-minute nap."

"It's fine," Beth smiled. "I'm assuming NASA's really grilling you before the launch." She paused, for a moment, unsure what to say. "Besides, I got to read a bit more on my novel, so it's alright."

"Oh, uh, what were you reading?" Eli asked.

Surprisingly, Beth had a relatively easy time talking to Eli, they talked about books for it all, kind of having a hard time switching topics. Awkward pauses were relatively few and far between, so that was a good thing—a good start, she'd say. They had lost about twenty minutes of required transmission time, and they even extended ten minutes over before Beth decided that Eli should get some sleep, she had been yawning and her eyes were drooping. NASA was really doing a number on her.

As the transmission ended, Beth decided that for first impressions, Eli didn't do so bad.

* * *

A/N: There it is! I just wanted to show a bit of the intensive training (I had to research a bit of it, and I'm not entirely sure of the accuracy of it :/) Next chapter, we'll get to the launch. 'Til next time!


	3. Chapter 3

"T-minus 5 minutes to launch. How are you doing there, Hutchison?" Mitch Henderson's voice came through the radio.

"I'm good, Flight. Slightly nervous. My throat feels a bit dry, I think I should've drank some water before going on board." Eli licked her lips—she usually started to blabber when she was nervous.

She was met with laughs from both sides. She had dual-communication, both with Flight in CNSA, and Hermes.

"We'll get you up here soon so you can get a drink," the Commander's voice sounded lightheartedly coming from the radio on Eli's right ear.

The vehicle she was on was relatively spacious, since she was the only one, inside, but it was packed with supplies, which were carefully stacked and attached to the walls for weight balance. The vehicle was made for the Ares 4 mission launch, but was retrofitted to accommodate only her and the supplies. They took out a bunch of control panels and all sorts of things since it would be piloted by Rick Martinez in the Hermes. She was wearing her EVA suit so in case anything went wrong, Ares 3 EVA specialist Chris Beck could pull her aboard easily. Once aboard the Hermes, she would have to tether herself and then help him with retrieving the supplies from the vehicle.

She was starting to feel anxious, but she tried to calm herself down—she was trained for the g-forces that would press down on her body, the possible acceleration sickness and all sorts of maladies that could happen. She could do this, she told herself. At the moment, she was seated on a chair, but the weight of her was towards the back of the chair, so she was facing upwards. Eli was strapped in and ready.

In what felt like forever, she finally heard Mitch's voice over the radio. "This is the Flight Director begin launch status check."

Faintly, Eli began to hear a series of go's, and when it came to her, she repeated it automatically.

The "Launch status check complete" came through, and Eli's heart kicked up a notch.

"This is Flight, we are a go for launch," Mitch said and Eli released a breath, taking in another lungful.

The countdown began, "10… 9… 8… 7… 6… main engine start..." Eli felt the vibration of the engine begin, but she couldn't hear the telltale hum of it. "4… 3… 2… ignition… 1. Lift off." Her body was pushed back as the massive propelling power of the liquid oxygen surged forward, trying to get her out of Earth's gravity. Within seconds, she felt pressure of several times her own weight press down on her form and she clenched her jaw and closed her eyes—she wasn't even able to take a breath. She vaguely felt the separation of the boosters and the other components, but she wasn't too preoccupied with it, she was more concentrated on making sure she didn't choke on her own tongue on the way up.

In moments, she started to feel the pressure lift, and the shaking of the vehicle was no longer apparent. Her limbs began to feel odd, her whole body did—this must be the weightlessness kicking in. Immediately, she felt a headache bloom in her head. For a while, her breathing was the only thing she could hear.

"Hermes to Iris 2," Commander Lewis' voice was loud and clear on the radio.

"I'm here, Hermes," she breathed out, slightly shaky.

"You're not sounding too good, Hutchison," Melissa replied. "How are you feeling?"

"Not too good. SAS is kicking in," Eli replied. Space adaptation syndrome was relatively common, the chances of getting it was about 50%. In her case, slight disorientation was already apparent, and the anti-nausea patch was keeping her from vomiting—overall, she was good. She needed to acclimate to weightlessness once she got aboard.

"Alright, we're going to have you in here soon. Keep it together, Hutchison."

"Copy that, Hermes." She replied, keeping her eyes closed—she didn't want to make the SAS worse.

Beth's voice came in. "Distance is 61 meters, with a velocity of 2.3 meters per second."

"Copy that," Rick's voice messaged.

A few seconds later, Eli heard Chris's voice. "Visual contact." At this moment, he was in Airlock 3, while Alex was in Airlock 2, as a backup. Once on board, Eli would be the other EVA specialist, so she would be Chris's secondary.

The Commander said something, but at that point Eli was starting to feel the headache becoming worse. She heard them speak, and she tried hard to listen in as Beth called out updates on the distance, and Chris updated on visual contact, and soon, she felt the jolt of the docking procedure begin. Relief flooded her system, making her sigh, she didn't think she could take an EVA at the moment.

"You still alright in there, Hutchison?" Chris asked. "Your BP is high, and your heart rate's worrying me."

"I'm good," Eli replied. "Just SAS. The anti-nausea patch is doing its job."

She heard loud clanks echo through the vehicle and she heard Rick confirm that the docking was complete, with Beth confirming that the seal was tight.

In the control room, Rick and Beth were at their stations, and the Commander was behind them, watching for any complications.

"Beck, your services won't be needed," the Commander said over her headset.

"Roger that, Commander. Closing airlock."

"Vogel, return to the interior," she said.

"Copy, Commander," Alex replied.

Once the two confirmed that they were inside, Melissa contacted Mitch Henderson. "Houst—er… Jiuquan, Iris 2 docking complete. No complications."

Mitch's voice came in an instant. "Glad to hear it, Hermes. Report status of Hutchison, and all supplies once you get them aboard and inspected."

"Roger, Jiquan." Melissa pressed another button to connect her to Eli. "Hutchison, what's your status?"

"The disorientation has gotten better, but my headache still persists. The anti-nausea patch is wearing off, and I think vertigo is setting in." Eli's voice sounded strained.

"Copy." Melissa turned to Rick and Beth. "Johanssen and Martinez, help Hutchison de-suit, then after Beck gets to her, unload and stow the supplies. I'm heading to Beck and Vogel to help them de-suit."

Back in the Iris 2, Eli had her eyes open, but she refused to unstrap herself from the seat just yet. She needed assistance to help her acclimatize to the environment. The white storage for the supplies were still intact and strapped to the walls of the Iris 2.

"Hutchison, how are you doing?" Chris's voice said over the radio.

"Nausea is setting in. I'm still strapped to my chair, so disorientation and vertigo are at a minimal." She took deep breaths, attempting for the headache to subside.

"Martinez and Johanssen will be there in a moment, they'll help you de-suit, and I'll be with you in a few minutes." Chris's calm voice made her smile.

The clank of the door opening called her attention and she saw Beth and Rick enter.

"Hey, there, doc, how you doing?" Rick said as he floated to her.

She managed a smile and a shaky laugh.

They helped unstrap her from the chair and steadied her, making sure she didn't float away. They quickly helped her de-suit, she then steadied herself on one of the handles. While she hung on to the handle, they started to unload the supplied.

Chris soon floated over. "Hey, Eli. Really good to see you again." He smiled at her, grabbing the handle she was on.

"Likewise, Dr. Beck," she said, though a bit strained because, goddammit, the headache was intensifying.

Chris seemed to notice. "Oh, right." He put his hand on the small of her back. "Just go limp, and I'll push you along until we head to the hallway of the control room, so you can acclimatize." He glanced at Beth and Rick. "Johanssen should be putting the spin back on soon, so, in a couple of hours, we can bring you down to your quarters to rest." He started a timer on the watch on his wrist. "How's the headache and nausea?" He positioned her so they were both horizontal in regards to the ship, one hand was on her shoulder, while the other pushed them down the hall.

"Not as bad…" The corner of her lips quirked up. "Not even a tenth of a Garn."

"Alright then," Chris said as the continued down the hallway. "You shouldn't take too long to acclimatize."

Melissa met them near the control room. Once they were in position, Eli took on a sitting position, as if she was sitting on the ground with her legs crossed over one another. She took deep breaths and smiled up at the Commander.

"Hello, Commander."

"Good to have you aboard, Hutchison."

"I'm happy to be here, Commander," Eli said, letting a small smile grace her lips.

"Once you're back to normal, head to the Rec to have a meeting." Melissa gave them both a smile, patting Eli lightly on the shoulder before floating away.

As she watched the Commander float away, Eli felt a smile crawl its way to her face. _She was on the Hermes._ And she was going to immortalize this moment—not this exact moment, but one of the few she had just experienced—for the rest of her life.


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey, Dad," Eli said, leaning back on her chair—technically, it would be Watney's, but he wasn't here, so…

"Can you hear me properly?" Her father's voice came, loud and clear.

"Yes, Dad," Eli replied, taking a sip of tea from her thermos. They were still near Earth, so transmission was still real-time.

"How was the launch? You're doing alright, aren't you?" Her father leaned back and studied her. He was on his leather chair, with the bookshelf as his background. He was wearing a collared shirt, which was his typical attire.

"Yes, dad. I'm fine, I had SAS earlier, but I'm alright now."

"You're looking a bit pale, Eli." His voice was stern, reminding her of when she had done things as a child that she wasn't supposed to. Like eat ice cream before dinner. Or paint on walls.

"It must be the transmission," Eli lied. She didn't need her dad unnecessarily worrying over her.

He scrutinized her, before he seemingly remembered something he had to do. "Oh, that reminds me. Students in my class wished you well yesterday," he smiled as he thought of his students. "They even gave me a card to show you," he held up a large folder, where a huge 'Good Luck!' was written, with the exclamation point being a rocket. Signatures littered the free space of the card.

Eli smiled, touched. "Tell them I said thanks, your students are so sweet."

Her father, Roger Hutchison, was a high school teacher, he taught Grade 12 Science. He was her first inspiration. She spoke to her father for a few more minutes before she heard a door opening from his side of the communication.

"Eli!" Her brother appeared on the screen, leaning over their father.

"James!" Eli's brows furrowed. "What are you doing at Dad's?"

"We all came together for the launch, Cam's here, too," her brother replied. He motioned with both hands for people to come over. All at once, her family came into the screen—her younger brother Cam, his girlfriend, James's wife, and her two nephews, Lowell and David. "We were waiting for your call."

They talked for a few more minutes until there was a knock on her door.

"Yes?" Eli called out.

Rick popped his head in. "Hey, uh… Commander's calling for assembly in the Rec, we just need to go over some stuff."

"Alright, I'll head right over." Once Rick had closed the door, she turned to the monitor again. "Well, I need to go. This might be my last real-time transmission, so, yeah." She nodded. "I'll try to send a video every now and then, but it'll most likely be emails." She sighed. "I love you all, and I'll see you in seventeen months' time."

They all, simultaneously, gave their farewells. Then she finished the transmission with a wave.

Eli quickly made her way to the Rec, and she found that she, embarrassingly, was the last one there. "I apologize, I was having a video communication." She quickly took her seat.

"No need to apologize," Melissa said. "It was private time anyway. We'll just go over some stuff before dinner and lights out."

Everyone was seated around a table, and Eli quickly took the seat that wasn't occupied. Things weren't really awkward, because she technically did know each of them—she'd had at least six 30-minute sessions with each of them—but she wasn't quite sure of their social dynamic.

"Alright, so as you all know, Hermes is designed to last the full Ares missions, but it is also designed to get repairs and replacements after every mission, so we need to monitor it very closely," Melissa started, using her hands to emphasize her points. "Hence, I want bi-daily checks on the Hermes. Martinez on the controls and the engines. Vogel will check on the thrusters and navigation and its equipment. Johanssen will be on systems, make sure our coms are all good, plus the reactor. Between the three of you, make sure Hermes is in shape and can get us safely to Mars then home." She paused, giving the three mentioned a look. "Beck will be in charge on checking our life support—oxygenators, water reclaimers, and doing diagnostics on the radiation shields. Hutchison will be assisting Beck, especially during necessary EVAs. You two are also in charge of the crew's health. Extending the trip endangers all our health. We'll keep our regular weekly physicals. Alright?"

Chris and Eli both nodded.

"Science experiments will go on as scheduled. Beck, explain to Hutchison Watney's experiments," Melissa looked at Chris and then Eli, "you'll be in charge of Watney's experiments from now on." She gave everyone a once over. "We won't be as good as Watney with the repairs, but we have all of NASA helping us through it. For now, we'll be having a weekly meeting on the status of the Hermes and crew, but it'll increase the longer we're in space. "

For the next few minutes, they spoke of the changes in the schedule, accommodating the bi-daily checks on the Hermes, science experiments, meetings, physicals, meal times and private time. All in all, the next few months were actually going to be busy.

Melissa leaned back with a sigh. "Okay, that concludes the meeting. Changes discussed will begin tomorrow, for now," she looked at Eli, smiling, "we have a crew member to welcome."

* * *

"So your brothers, what do they do?" Rick asked as he dug into his meal, which was fresh from the microwave.

"My older brother's in a corporate job, he's the head of operations for a company based in New York. My younger brother is an artist, he paints, sculpts and teaches sometimes," Eli answered as she pushed her food around on her plate, wanting it a bit colder.

Currently, they were in the kitchen, which had a rectangular table with three seats on opposite sides. Eli sat across from Rick, on the same side as Johanssen and Vogel.

"Ohhh," Rick's eyebrows shot to his hairline as his face contorted in excitement. "Does he do portraits? I kind of wanted a portrait of me in my uniform. Maybe in this pose." He placed his hand under his chin, angled his head to the side and changed his expression to one of deep thought, looking straight at Eli.

Chris, and Beth made sounds of repulsion, scrunching their faces, while Alex, Melissa and Eli all laughed or smiled.

"So is it going above the fireplace, next to the bear, or was it going beside the snooty statue of yourself in nude?" Chris asked.

Rick lightly shoved Chris, then continued eating his food.

Eli leaned forward, taking a bite of her meal as she looked over the table, watching each crew member as they interacted.

The next 533 days wouldn't be so bad.

* * *

"He's flatlined!"

"Dammit!" Chris cursed as he stepped back, hands on his waist as he hung his head low. The

Eli looked at Chris for a few moments before speaking up. "It's fine, Chris. In hindsight, we should've raised his heart rate before proceeding."

Despite her words, he continued to shake his head, glaring at Rick, who served as their dummy.

"Hey, man, don't go glaring at me. I just died!" Rick had his hands up.

"Chris, it's alright. There's a 5% chance of an embolism."

"With that guy's luck, I wouldn't be surprised," Chris muttered as he leaned on the bed.

They were currently in Chris' quarters, running simulations. Rick was wearing a jacket that produced signals that connected to a nearby laptop, which showed simulated vitals. NASA had sent them simulations to run, based a lot on what Eli had learned during her intensive training.

Three months in, on mission day 475, she had logged most of Watney's zero-g plants dead, with a single surviving fern that was being very, very resilient. Personally, she had the most horrible gardening skills, or generally keeping-a-plant-alive skills. She had a cactus once. It died. So having so much more time at hand, since science experiments weren't on her plate anymore, she helped Chris with his science experiments and used the remaining time for simulations or going over possible medical conditions and treatments.

Rick looked at his wristwatch. "We need to go. It's time for dinner."

Today was a pretty special day—a bit of a break from their normal routine monotony.

It was Alex's birthday.

The NASA psych team thought that it would be great for the crew to have a bit of a feast on birthdays—also on special holidays, like Christmas, New Year's and Thanksgiving. It was actually pretty much the same stuff, freeze-dried meat, and a bunch of vacuum packed vegetables. NASA tried to make the birthday food as different as they could, based on the celebrant's preference. The only thing missing would be alcohol—but that sure as hell wasn't allowed anywhere near the ship.

Chris and Eli helped Rick remove the simulator jacket, putting the simulation equipment away. Then they made their way to the Rec, where the kitchen also was. Tonight, they'd be having something called _Eintopf_ , which, according to Alex, was a traditional German stew. Although a picky eater back on Earth, Eli wasn't complaining. A change from the usual rations was welcome.

"Hey, man. Happy birthday!" Rick said, clasping Vogel by his shoulder.

" _Alles Gute zum Geburtstag,_ " Eli said, raising her chin with pride as she smiled. "Did I say that right?"

Alex laughed, shaking his head. " _Nein._ "

Eli sighed. "I've been preparing that just for this moment," she mumbled as she took her place by Beth, who was cutting potatoes at the table.

"Well, too bad," Beth said as she handed Eli a cutting board, carrots and a knife.

Alex was seated in front of Beth, who was at the middle of the table. In front of Eli and beside Alex was Melissa, and Rick and Chris sat opposite one another, with Chris beside Beth, giving her an affectionate smile. That was pretty much their basic arrangement. Music blasted through the speakers—it was Alex's playlist, which was mostly German stuff, with an occasional obscure English song in there for good measure.

For tonight, NASA had sent them a movie—chosen by Alex—to be watched after dinner.

"So, uhm, what are we watching later?" Eli asked. This was the first birthday she had seen aboard the Hermes.

"It is a surprise," Alex said as he continued to chop the meat. "It is very good movie—"

"And, I'm sure, very German," Rick commented.

"Oh, I'm sure it's better than that weird Mexican one we had to watch," Beth said, shaking her head.

Melissa snickered, and Chris shook his head.

"Oh, as if yours was any better, Commander," Rick said, shuddering. "I will never see frogs the same way again. If I see a frog, I will kill that motherfucker."

Melissa laughed, shaking her head, not bothering to defend herself. Soon, they all finished their preparations and waited for the meal to cook, sitting around the Rec. Eli sat back on the couch, scrolling through her emails. In regards to personal items, she didn't have much—no books, or papers, or physical pictures. What she did have was her personal laptop and a USB with an incredible amount of memory. A lot of the emails she received were medical journals—she sent a lot of them to Chris, and he, in turn, sent her a bunch of medical journals to her as well. Her father checked in on her everyday—even sending group pictures. Her brothers constantly sent videos as well, James more than Cam, though.

Alex called them over, telling them that the _Eintopf_ was cooked and ready. They sang him happy birthday—no candles or a cake, for that matter, but they took a video anyway to send back to his family. After the awesome birthday feast, they ended up watching a movie called _The Lives of Others_ —it was in German, but it was okay because it had subtitles.

"Man, I wish Mark was here," Rick said, leaning back on the couch. "He'd hate this movie with me."

The crew spared him smiles and eye rolls, but said nothing.

Eli did notice something, and it made her sad. Often times, the crew had a hard time really relaxing. They still felt a certain weight of guilt—guilt that they were okay, and that Mark wasn't, guilt that they were not alone, and Mark was. There were moments where one would comment on Mark's absent, lightheartedly, meaning no harm, but Eli could feel the shift in attitudes, the change in atmosphere. She couldn't even imagine how bad it was when they had thought that Mark was dead.

It made Eli sure of one thing. If they failed to rescue Mark, the crew members would never be the same again.

* * *

Mission Day 570, about 205 days since Eli came on board, proved to be the start of the Hermes issues. Despite their maintenance and monitoring, space was determined to be a bitch.

"What are you doing here?" Rick asked, floating into Airlock 3. His brows furrowed. "And is that the sound of… birds and water?"

"If you're here because of the heat issue, go find your own room, Martinez, I've claimed this one." Eli replied as she set up her sleeping bag, tethering it to the wall. Her laptop was sort of tethered, too, playing the gentle sounds of rain she had downloaded back on Earth. "And yes—it helps me sleep. And do you know what the issue with our bunk rooms is?"

Rick steadied himself on one of the handles. "I think it's the tubing in the hull that's supposed to be carrying the coolant. Probably a clog, we won't be able to fix it, though."

Eli shook her head. "We're going to be so crowded once Watney gets aboard."

The pilot steadily made his way out of the airlock. "It's fine, NASA's got us, we'll find away."

Rick's optimism always managed to make Eli smile.

"Oh, and can I have a copy of that? I was getting tired of listening to my music these past couple of days."

"Yeah, sure, just hand me your USB when you can."

The next few days were slightly busier than the ones before. Eli had to assist Chris on the diagnostics on life support, because if anything ever went wrong with those, they were surely screwed. And then they had to clean the filters and there were several problems that came with it. They were all behind on their science experiments—Mark's resilient fern was still alive and growing.

When the meeting in the Rec came, they were all in a hurry to finish tasks.

"Alright, we'll keep the status short. We're all behind on our science experiments." Melissa said as she started the status meeting. "Vogel, you first."

Alex quickly reported on the status of the ion thrusters. Then came Beth on the reactor, then Chris spoke for him and Eli about the status of the life support.

"We knew this would happen," Melissa stated. "The design of Hermes assumed it would get an overhaul after each mission, but we've extended Ares 3 from 396 days to 898. Things are going to break. We've got all of NASA to help when that happens. We just need to stay on top of maintenance." Finally, Melissa turned to Rick and Eli. "You two, what's the deal with your bunk rooms?"

Eli looked at Rick, indicating for him to talk.

He furrowed his brow. "It's still trying to cook us. The climate control just isn't keeping up. It's probably the tubing in the hull that carries the coolant, and we can't repair it because it's in the hull." He glanced at Eli, shrugging. "We could probably use the rooms for storage of non-temperature-sensitive cargo, but that's about it."

Melissa frowned. "Where have you two been sleeping?"

Eli spoke up. "I took Airlock 3, and Martinez is in 2."

"It's the only place we can so people don't trip over us."

"No. It's no good." Melissa shook her head in disapproval. "If one seal breaks, either of you die."

Eli shrugged. "We have no choice. If we sleep in the hallways, we get in the way."

"Alright," Melissa said, leaning back. "From now on Martinez bunks with Vogel. Hutchison takes Beck's room. Beck sleeps with Johanssen."

Silence rained unto the crew. Beth looked down awkwardly, and Eli could see the blush on her cheeks.

Chris looked around the table, settling on Melissa. "So… You knew about that?"

Melissa's brows both went up. She looked around, a hint of a smile on her lips. "You thought none of us did? It's a small ship."

And, oh, how all of them knew. Small glances, affectionate smiles, lingering touches. They weren't astronauts for nothing.

"And you're not mad?" Chris said, nervous. His brows were furrowed in confusion.

"If it were a normal mission, I would be," Melissa replied. "But we're gone way off-script now. Just keep it from interfering with your duties and I'm happy."

Rick, being the pervert that he was, raised his hand in a gesture of high-five to Chris. "Million-mile-high club! Nice!"

Melissa shook her head, Alex laughed, Eli rolled her eyes, and the newly announced couple just looked down in embarrassment.

* * *

They gathered in the Rec once again, right after waking up this time. Melissa had some announcements to make.

"Alright, Watney's 2 Sols away from the MAV, so communications will be back up," she explained. "We're forty-seven days away from intercept. Martinez and Johanssen start doing sims on all possible scenarios. Vogel, make sure we're on track. Hutchison and Beck, prepare for the EVA for the intercept."

Everyone nodded.

"NASA will have communication with Watney back up once he reaches the MAV."

"When will we be able to speak with Watney directly?" Eli asked.

"Not until NASA gives us a go, which could range from a couple of days or the day before the launch itself. We're not sure," Melissa replied. "Is there anything you wanted to communicate?"

Eli nodded. "I wanted to get vital signs and ask him some questions regarding his current status."

"Yeah," Chris nodded in agreement. "Based on our estimates, he'll have a number of medical issues, so we need to prepare."

"Which reminds me," Eli said, looking at Chris briefly as she leaned forward, looking at the Commander once more. "I wonder if it's alright to use the gym as our medbay? Any of the crew's bunk rooms right now are crowded, and we need the space to move around."

"Alright, fine." Melissa nodded. "I'll ask NASA about the communication. Make sure everything you set up is stowed away properly. We might have to stop the spin of the ship for the intercept."

Eli nodded. "Understood, Commander."

Melissa then dismissed them, letting them all return to their duties. Eli floated along, heading to her quarters, mind already swimming with plans and simulations.

* * *

A/N: Next chapter will have the intercept! I hope you guys enjoyed this! :)


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Why, hello there! :D So, this next chapter is actually a bit eh, for me at least? It's basically just the rescue, and we all know how that went, but this time I inserted Eli into it. I've wrote the next chapter already, and am halfway done, so I might get that up as soon as this weekend :D But anyway, here it is, enjoy :D

* * *

HRM: Good day, Mark! My name is Eli Hutchison, your new crew mate. I am the flight surgeon for Ares 4 and I am loo—

Eli looked at her message and frowned. Nope. No. She sounded like one of _those_.

HRM: Greetings, Mark Watney!

Nope. No. It reminded her of an alien invasion.

HRM: Hello, Mark. I'm Eli Hutchison, the secondary flight surgeon added to the Ares 3 crew, and flight surgeon for Ares 4. NASA has given me the go signal to speak to you from Hermes. Anticipating your arrival on board, Beck and I have been preparing for any medical issues you might have. Given this, we would highly appreciate it if you could wear your biomonitor every day. The MAV will get a read on it, and NASA's programmed it to send it directly to Beck and I.

Eli looked at the message, nodding as she read and re-read it. Once she pressed 'Enter', she sat back and waited for a reply. NASA had given the go signal for her, and her alone, to communicate with Mark. They were still having qualms about letting the original crew have direct communication in case of personality conflicts.

A ping sounded out several minutes later, as she was looking through her laptop, telling her that the reply came.

[19:09] MAV: Hey there, doc! As of now my pulse's 54, and BP 90/63

[19:12] HRM: That's pretty low, but it's expected since you've been on Mars for 18 months. Do you mind if I ask you some questions regarding your health? They gave me your file and some stuff, but I think it's best to ask you directly.

[19:16] MAV: Go ahead, doc.

[19:20] HRM: How are your sleeping patterns?

[19:25] MAV: I've got loads of time to sleep. That's all I pretty much do. Maybe around 10 hours per day. Average. The driving takes about 3-4 hours, and it takes 13 hours for the solar panels to charge, so I sleep after I take a walk in the awesome, picturesque landscape that is Mars.

[19:28] HRM: The rover flipped a couple of sols ago, what's your status?

They messaged each other back and forth, replying as quick and as precise as possible. She noted, however, that Mark could be very sarcastic, among other things. Transmission finished about an hour after, and she had a clearer understanding of his status—some of which were already predicted. Mark was extremely malnourished, on top of all other things. Eli bit her lower lip as she narrowed her eyes at the notes she just took.

She stood up and left her room, passing by Chris and Beth's. During the months before they shared a room, Beth's room was always open. Now it was perpetually closed. She climbed up the ladder then transferred to another, heading to the Rec.

She went to the cupboards and checked the rations, already planning a diet for Mark. She needed to get him back to a proper BMI before she could impose physical therapy and muscle gain. He'd be half-starving, and running on potatoes, so that means his protein intake was minimal. She needed to give him something that could build up muscle, fat and won't upset his stomach for the first couple of weeks.

Eli took out the rations necessary and got to calculating.

* * *

"Why are you eating… baby food?" Beth asked, giving Eli a curious stare.

Eli mashed the rations using hot water. "Testing something out."

"And what is that?" Chris asked, looking at her mug.

"Broth." She paused in her mashing to explain. "Okay, so I talked to Watney last night, and he's extremely malnourished, plus running on potatoes. His protein intake is extremely low, but his vitamin intake is normal. With our seven-month window, we don't have so much time. So, to not upset his stomach, I did this." She motioned to her plate and to her mug. "Boil the ration," Eli held up the packet for Beef Teriyaki, "to get the broth, then mash the rest so he can eat it. I'm working on the taste."

Beth approached the percolator mounted on the counter.

"Don't!" Eli called out. "I, uh, still need to clean that." She got off her chair and went to the percolator. "I had to put the ration inside to get the broth." She quickly cleaned the percolator and filled it with water, setting it back to heat.

The next weeks were filled with preparations. They still had to do the bi-daily checks on the Hermes systems, science experiments were all pushed back, and so were weekly physicals. They spent their time doing sims—Beth and Rick on flight, and Eli and Chris on medical issues. Eli and Chris had to do them in the gym, where they had already set up the necessary supplies, everything within reach so they wouldn't need to climb up and over anything. They used Alex for the sims, the kind German was happy to help. Aside from the medical stuff, the pair needed to prepare for the EVA necessary for the intercept.

Finally, on Mission Day 686, they gathered in the Rec. The ship's spin was stopped for the intercept, and everything was stowed away to keep them from floating and getting in the way. They floated in a circle, with some keeping their hand on the ceiling to stop drifting.

"Alright," Melissa said. "Tomorrow's the big day."

"I'm ready," Rick said. "Johanssen threw everything she could at me. I go all scenarios to orbit."

"Everything other than catastrophic failures," Beth interjected.

Rick shrugged. "Well, yeah. Kind of pointless to simulate an ascent explosion. Nothing we can do."

"Vogel, how's our course?" Melissa said, turning to the chemist.

"It is perfect," he replied. "We are within one meter of projected path and two centimeters per second of projected velocity."

"Good." Melissa nodded. "Beck, Hutchison, how about you two?"

"Everything's all set up, Commander," Chris replied.

"We linked all the tethers, and they're spooled in Airlock 2. Suits and MMUs are prepped and ready," Eli confirmed.

"We've also set up the medical equipment for easy access for any complications during the launch."

"Okay, the battle plan is pretty obvious," Melissa said. She placed her hand on the ceiling to stop the drift she acquired before she continued. "Martinez will fly the MAV, Joahnssen will sysop the ascent. Beck, Hutchison and Vogel I want you in Airlock 2 with the outer door open before the MAV even launches. You'll have to wait fifty-two minutes, but I don't want to risk any technical glitches with the airlock or your suits. Once we reach intercept, it's Beck's job to get Watney."

"He might be in bad shape when I get him," Chris said. "The stripped-down MAV will get up to twelve g's during the launch. He could be unconscious and may even have internal bleeding."

"Just as well you two are the doctors," Melissa said. "Vogel and Hutchison, if all goes according to plan, you're pulling Beck and Watney back aboard with the tether. If things go wrong, Hutchison will be backup and go after them."

Alex and Eli nodded. If Eli failed, however… That's about half the crew lost.

Melissa looked at each of them for a moment. "I wish there was more we could do right now. But all we have left is the wait. Your work schedules are cleared. All scientific experiments are suspended. Sleep if you can. Run diagnostics on your equipment if you can't."

"We'll get him, Commander," Eli heard Rick say as they all floated out. "Twenty-four hours from now, Mark Watney will be aboard."

"Let's hope so, Major," was Melissa's reply.

Eli went up and up, then she went down the ladder to the gym, whereas Chris went down the hall, presumably to the Airlock 2 ready room to check on the equipment. Beth and Alex both headed into the crew's quarters. She stopped at the beginning of the room, placing her personal wireless headset on, listening to the gentle sounds of crickets and flowing water as she surveyed the gym.

She pushed herself from on handle to another, going into the corner of the gym, where a foldable table was attached to the wall. It could be stowed away, like a tray on a plane, by flattening it into the wall. The table was mostly used for the crew's weekly physicals, but it would now be Mark's make-shift bed. The equipment was stowed somewhere nearby, to prevent it from floating around. She checked where they were, and imagined where they would be positioned. Eli and Chris had already run the diagnostics on all the equipment.

Chris, Eli and Alex all discussed possible scenarios to get Mark on board. In one scenario, if Chris couldn't reach Mark, he and Eli would go out untethered to the Hermes, but linked to one another. Alex would be on standby in case all three couldn't go back on board. Of course, by then, over half the crew would be out of the ship, so Melissa wouldn't authorize it.

At some point, after checking the table. She found herself staring out the glass window, into space. If she were to forget the fact that she was floating, it would seem as if she were back home, staring up at the sky.

While she didn't know Mark Watney—they'd had a few transmissions, is all—she still felt apprehension at the prospect of failure. This was a man who'd survived in Mars for a year and a half. After all the hopelessness, desolation and suffering he'd gone through, she didn't want to think of him failing. It disturbed her on a fundamental level.

* * *

Chris, Alex and Eli all stood in Airlock 2, with their suits. Eli and Alex had their magnetic boots on, while Chris was tethered in. Eli looked at Mars—live and unhindered by anything but her faceplate. It was as beautiful as she'd imagined, and yet the red planet looked terrifyingly menacing by the lack of colors.

All their radios were connected, so they heard Beth speaking. "Fuel pressure green. Engine alignment perfect. Communication five by five. We are ready for preflight checklist, Commander."

"Copy," Melissa replied. "CAPCOM."

"Go," Beth said.

"Guidance."

"Go."

"Remote Command."

"Go," Rick responded.

"Pilot."

"Go," Mark replied, strapped into his chair in the MAV.

"Telemetry."

"Go," Beth answered.

"Recovery," Melissa continued.

"Go," Chris replied from inside the airlock.

"Secondary Recovery."

"Go," Eli responded as she looked over the red planet from beside Chris.

"Tertiary Recovery."

"Go," Alex said, nodding along.

"Mission Control, this is Hermes Actual. We are go for launch and will proceed on schedule. We are T minus four minutes, ten seconds to launch… mark."

They all turned off their radio, but the radio from the Control Room would constantly be on to keep them all in the loop.

"Didn't think I'd be back here again," Chris said as he floated near the outer door of the airlock.

"Yes, we are the first," Alex said.

"First what?" Eli asked, brows furrowing.

"We are the first to visit Mars twice." Alex paused, then looked at Eli. "Sorry, Dr. Hutchison."

Eli shrugged in response, but it wasn't quite distinct with her space suit on.

"Oh yeah. Even Watney can't say that."

"He cannot." Alex was silent as he looked down.

They were quiet for several moments.

"Hutchison," Chris said.

"What?"

"If I can't reach Mark, I want you to release my tether."

It was Alex who spoke up. "Dr. Beck, the Commander has said no to this."

"I'd have to agree," Eli said, speaking up.

"Just listen, okay. I know what the Commander said. But if I need a few more meters, I need you to cut me loose, Hutchison. I have an MMU, I can get back without a tether."

"Yes, maybe. But the MMU has limited fuel. If you use it all up, you and Watney will just end up drifting. I won't do it, Beck," Eli countered.

"It's my own life at risk, and I say it's okay."

"You are not the Commander," Alex said.

It was quiet for a moment before Chris said anything. "Fine."

Eli got the distinct feeling that Chris was glaring at both of them.

"But I bet you'd both change your minds once push comes to shove."

Alex and Eli said nothing.

A few moments later, they all heard Beth's voice over the radio for the countdown.

Over the course of the next few minutes, things went very weird.

* * *

A bomb.

Yes. They were going to activate a bomb. _In a space craft._

Eli was already internally freaking out.

Once they figured out the trigger, the Commander called Alex in. "Vogel, get in here and make the bomb. After setting it up, you're headed to the Control Room and into your station. Martinez, go close and seal the doors to the reactor room."

Eli heard the sounds from the Control Room as Beth and Rick left, with Chris asking Rick to keep the lab mice safe.

"Are you back in, Vogel?" Melissa asked.

"I'm just reentering now, Commander."

"Beck, I'll need you back in, too. But don't take your suit off."

Eli and Chris both exchanged glances.

"Okay," Chris said as he untethered himself and floated to the airlock's inner door. "Why?"

Melissa explained and Chris soon followed. He'd have to go along the hull to get back inside Airlock 2.

"Get to it," Melissa said. "Hutchison, you'll stay in Airlock 2. Once Beck is out, close the inner door and open the outer door to let him get back inside after setting the bomb. Tether yourself. You'll go get him if he goes drifting."

"Copy that, Commander," Eli replied as she took the tether that had previously been attached to Chris's suit and attached it to her own. She then donned an MMU.

Eli then went and depressurized, opening the outer door after. She stood a little outside the airlock, floating along the rim. She made sure she had a firm hold of the handle. Eli remained floating, eyes trained on the VAL anticipating Chris. Turning her eyes away for just a second, she noticed it. She could actually start to see a small dot in the distance, after a few more minutes, she recognized its shape, from all the training she had back on Earth and the various specs they had on board.

"Commander, I have visual on the MAV," she reported.

"Copy that."

Then she saw movement along the hull. "I also have visual on Beck," she said. "Ready for retrieval if necessary."

"Roger that."

Eli alternated her gaze on the MAV then on Chris, who was getting closer and closer already. Finally, she moved back into the airlock to give Chris space to enter.

"This has been kind of a weird day," Chris said as he entered. "Commander, Hutchison and I are in position."

Melissa responded immediately. "Copy. Get up against the fore wall of the airlock. It's going to be about one g for four seconds. Make sure you're both tethered in."

"Copy," Chris said, which Eli mimicked a second after.

Chris tethered himself in, while Eli grabbed a shorter one that was intended for Alex and tethered herself to the wall.

They both pressed themselves to the wall, waiting for the explosion.

A few moments later, Beth was doing her countdown. "…six… five… four… three…"

"Brace for acceleration," Melissa's voice came through.

"…two… one… Activating Light Panel 41."

In a split second, a full force pushed both Chris and Eli, pressing the wall into their backs as they jerked forward. It lasted only for a few seconds, and they were once again back to weightlessness.

The four people in the Control Room could be heard quickly going over status.

Finally, Melissa called to Chris. "Beck, you're up. Twelve meters per second."

"Close enough!" Chris replied as he and Eli detached their tethers.

Eli quickly exchanged the longer tether attached to the spool in the airlock with Chris. She still had the magnetic boots on, so she was okay.

"I'm going to jump out. Should get me another two or three meters per second."

"Alright," Eli nodded as she wrapped her hands loosely around the tether. "Go get him!"

Chris quickly kicked off the back wall and was out the airlock fast. Once outside, he was able to see the MAV. "I have visual! I can see the MAV!" After a few seconds of silence, Chris spoke again. "Jesus, Mark, what did you _do_ to that thing?"

"You should see what I did to the rover," Mark said over the radio. He sounded exasperated and pained.

Well, that's what it sounded like when you've broken a rib or two.

Eli watched closely as Chris came closer and closer to the MAV, with help from Beth. He grabbed on to the torn Hab canvas and used it to get a firm grip on the MAV.

"Contact!" He said as he first grabbed it. When he had a more secure grip, he reported, "firm contact!"

"Beck, we've passed closest approach point and you're getting further away." Eli said over the radio as she saw the numbers projected on her faceplate. "There's one hundred sixty-nine meters left of the tether. You have fourteen seconds."

"Copy."

Eli saw him moving to the opening of the MAV. "Visual on Watney!"

"Visual on Beck!" Mark reported back.

"How ya doin', man?" Chris asked as he got into the ship and Eli lost visual on him.

"I… I just…" Mark sounded very choked up through the radio, which he probably really was. "Give me a minute. You're the first person I've seen in eighteen months."

"We don't have a minute. We have eleven seconds before we run out of tether," Chris said. There were a few moments of silence before he spoke again. "Contact with Watney!"

"Eight seconds, Beck," Eli reported as she steadily fed the tether out of the airlock.

"Copy," Chris responded. Eli still couldn't see anything from where she was. "Connected!"

Mark spoke a second later. "Restraints off."

"We're outa here," Chris said. A moment later, Eli saw him once more, but this time with another in tow. "We're out."

"Five seconds," she watched, feeling anxious.

"Relative velocity to Hermes: twelve meters per second," Beth said over the radio.

"Thrusting." Chris used the MMU to accelerate as much as he could. After a few seconds, he spoke again. "That's it for fuel. Velocity?"

"Five meters per second," Beth answered quickly.

"Stand by," Eli said as she gripped the tether with both hands, creating friction. They were now dragging Chris and Mark along, and she was the connection to make sure the tether didn't break with the shock. Finally, she felt the force lessen to zero.

"Velocity zero!" Beth said, excitement pretty clear.

"Reel 'em in, Hutchison," the Commander said.

"Copy that," Eli said, not being able to help the smile that came upon her face.

One hand after the other, she pulled the tether in. When they had developed an acceleration towards the Hermes and were coasting towards it, she stopped pulling. Once they were near enough, she grabbed Mark, and then Chris, both reaching for handles inside. She closed the outer door after them.

"Aboard!" Chris called out excitedly.

"Airlock 2 outer door closed," Eli reported.

"Yes!" Eli heard Rick yell into the radio.

"Copy," Melissa said, a slight laugh. Then she reported to NASA. "Houston, this is Hermes Actual. Seven crew safely aboard."


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Hey, guys! So, here's the next chapter, I hope you guys enjoy and review! I love reading your reviews :D They motivate me to update as soon as possible! :D

* * *

Eli had, honest to God, expected many scenarios.

The stench was not one of them.

It was one of the more manageable ones, however. After having gotten into the Hermes, it was Chris's task to get Mark to the gym, whereas Eli closed the outer VAL door. Once she was done, she immediately went to the gym, and waited along with Chris and Mark for the ship to re-pressurize. Once Beth had given them the clear, it was time to remove their suits.

Eli nearly vomited.

Chris placed the helmet back on Mark. "We're going to have to do preliminary stuff in my room." His face was scrunched up in disgust as he put the back of his palm to his nose. "We'll give him pain medications for the chest, do some X-rays then bandage it with the waterproof one. We'll get him to take a shower."

Eli agreed wholeheartedly. "Use my room instead, the room will retain the smell, but I'll be here for the next few days, so it wouldn't matter. Ask Johannsen to halt the spin after he's done showering so we can get him back in here."

"Alright, you set up the stuff here, and I'll stay with him." He secured the helmet on Mark then pulled him through the ladder and into the crew's quarters.

"Beck," she said into her radio when she realized she couldn't set up just yet. "I'm going to check on the life support first for any damage."

"Copy," Chris replied. "This will take about an hour or so."

With that Eli placed on her wireless headset on the other ear—not taking off the other one. She played the sound of rain this time.

Since the spin wasn't back on yet, Eli decided to first put away the suits. Thankfully, she still had hers on, and she'd just have to drag Chris's along. Once she had finished that, Beth told everyone that the ship's spin would be returning, but would be turned off once more in about an hour to let Mark get to the med bay, all clean and stench-free.

After that, she ran diagnostics on their life support, she'd be doing more of that later. Their life support was meant to withstand the ship being breached and in vacuo, but with everything in the Hermes breaking apart, they couldn't be too sure.

Finally, about two hours later, Eli heard Chris ask for the ship's spin to be halted. Eli was already finishing up diagnostics from Chris's station in the Control Room—she'd checked three times to be sure.

"Alright," she said as she got up. Rick, Beth, Alex and Melissa were all in their stations, doing the diagnostics. "I'm going to head to the med bay. We'll need a full check up on Watney, so I'll be setting up."

"Have you finished the diagnostics on the life support?" Melissa asked, briefly turning from her station.

"Yes, Commander," Eli answered. "They're all up and running well. I think we'll need to check on the water reclaimer, though, just to be sure."

"Vogel, you'll check on that."

" _Ja,_ " Alex replied from his station.

Eli headed down to the gym, Beth had put the spin off, so it didn't take much effort to go through. She pushed herself against the walls and gathered the boxes where the equipment were. They were sealed into the boxes, so they weren't affected by the vacuo. A few minutes later, Chris and Mark went through.

Chris settled Mark on to the table first before radioing to Beth. "Alright, Johanssen. We're in the med bay, place the spin back on."

"Copy."

As the spin came back on and the centripetal force stuck her to the floor, Eli got her first real good look at Mark Watney.

Eli, like everyone else back on Earth, had seen his face on a bunch of Ares 3 promotional posters, plus the videos and all that. She'd also seen him around in JSC during his Ares 3 training. He was attractive and fit—the epitome of a man in his prime.

Now… Now he looked drastically different. His cheeks were caved in, he had bags under his eyes, and his skin was sallow. He was only in pants at the moment, Chris was fixing his bandages, and from where Eli stood, she could see the skin sag on his arms, and the various blisters that had developed on his skin.

Upon his eyes settling on her, he smiled, the skin on his lips were cracked and dry. "Hey, there doc! Nice to finally meet you in person."

Eli managed a small smile for him as she came closer with the equipment in tow. "Good to see you, Mark."

"Alright, Mark, we'll need to do an ultrasound to check on your organs, hopefully, your ribs didn't damage anything." Chris gently pushed Mark back on the table so he was laying down. The table didn't have a metallic surface, rather it had more of a soft one, like the couch they had, more for comfort than anything.

"Bossy-Beck… Man… Have I told you I missed you?" Mark said, clutching on to Chris's sweater. He raised his arms. "Bring it in for a hug, buddy."

Chris looked at Eli apologetically as he leaned down, letting Mark wrap his thin arms around him. "I may have given him a bit more Vicodin than necessary. He's a bit loopy."

"Heh. Loopy." Mark chuckled. "It's like Fruit Loops… Fuck, I miss Fruit Loops… I'd give anything right now for some Cheetos."

Eli gave Chris a worried look. "Let's not give him anymore Vicodin." She took out the small ultrasound machine and handed it to Chris.

Chris nodded. "Yeah, addiction might set in."

"I'll set up the IV and heart monitor, and prep the ECG for use after the ultrasound." Eli took the packet that contained the necessary stuff for an IV. She set up the IV rack while Chris did the ultrasound, hanging the saline solution. As she made sure the connections were alright, she looked down at Mark, who was watching her with a smile on his face.

"You have such dainty hands, Hutch… Do you mind if I call you that? Hutch was this friend of mine back in college… Man, Dungeons and Dragons was never the same…"

Eli couldn't help the amused look on her face. "Thanks, Mark." She took his arm and prepped it for the insertion of the IV. "Okay, I'm putting it in."

"That's what she said," Mark laughed.

Eli gave him a deadpan look, pushing the needle through his vein. Once she was sure she hit the vein, she connected it to the saline solution, then put the clear covering for the needle to stay in place. She then placed the various wires into Mark's chest, connecting him to the heart monitor, which now gave a steady rhythm.

"Finished with the IV and heart monitor, prepping the ECG," she reported.

They constantly needed to report to each other what was going on. It could be boring and may seem unnecessary, but it made sure they both knew what was happening.

"No…" Chris said.

His tone alarmed Eli, and she looked at him from her position kneeling on the floor by a box. He had his brows furrowed, and he was frowning as he looked at something from the monitor.

"Prep the HIFU. His spleen's ruptured," he reported.

"Copy."

"Well, shit." Mark was able to muster as he lifted his head up to look at Chris, who pushed his head down.

"Don't move, the bleeding might get worse."

"Okayyyyyy… Bossy-Beck," Mark slurred.

Eli frowned as she immediately took the High Intensity Focused Ultrasound and set it up, prepping it for use. It was difficult to operate in space, so NASA decided that operations were only done in extreme, necessary cases. The HIFU allowed them to stop internal bleeding without having to cut the patient open. "I'll call Vogel in to prep for a blood transfusion."

Mark had type A blood, matching three people in the crew: Beth, Alex and Beck.

As she booted the HIFU, she turned her mic on. "Vogel, I need you in the med bay. Watney has a ruptured spleen, we'll be using the HIFU, but we'll also need to prep for blood transfusion to replace the blood he's losing."

They had gone over it before, when they were going through medical scenarios. In case there was a need for a blood transfusion, Alex would be first because of his size. Second would be Beth, and then Beck. Beck was last because blood transfusions could cause low blood pressure and such. He needed to be alert for Mark's treatment.

"Copy," Alex replied. "On my way."

Eli took out the blood transfusion device and waited for Alex, who arrived moments later—it was, after all, a small ship. While Chris began the HIFU treatment, Eli took the blood from Alex. She had been prepping it when the steady rhythm of the heart monitor became odd.

She placed the blood bag on the surface of the blood transfusion device, looking at the heart monitor, brows furrowed.

The rhythm wasn't steady, or stable. Mark was now unconscious, and his breathing was shallow. Eli had seen this many times before.

Eli looked at Chris. "He's going into cardiac arrest, ready the defibrillator."

Chris didn't say a word as he got the defibrillator, just in time as Mark's heart monitor increased its beat. Eli began CPR, breathing air into Mark's lungs after three chest compressions.

"Clear," Chris said, holding the paddles.

Eli stepped back and let him press the paddles on Mark's chest.

They both looked at the heart monitor. Eli was the one to speak. "Normal heart rhythm obtained," she breathed in relief. She looked at Chris as he put away the paddles, frowning.

"It was probably the internal bleeding," Chris said as he got back to the HIFU machine.

Eli moved quickly as she immediately began the blood transfusion procedure. "The IV and the blood should bring up blood volume level to normal. I'll drain the blood."

"Put it in a sample bottle, we'll use it for analysis."

"Copy."

A couple of minutes later, Mark woke up, giving the two doctors relief. Of course, they were both in their elements, and were very qualified to treat Mark. What worried them was that equipment was minimal, and NASA only sent things that were portable, or small enough. The next few weeks would definitely be a challenge.

Mark, noticing their grim expressions, spoke. "What happened, Beck?"

"You nearly went into cardiac arrest from the loss of blood, Mark."

Mark's eyes widened. "I hope _you_ didn't kiss me, man… You're handsome as hell… But I don't swing that way."

That lightened the mood. All three of them laughed, even Alex, who had been quietly standing there, watching the moment.

The next couple of hours were busy as they did the preliminary treatment on Mark—who was so out of it that he laughed, slapping Chris's hands away as the doctor prodded his arms.

He also laughed when they told him he had scurvy.

"I'm a space pirate!" He said. He changed his accent to a British one. "You may call me Captain Blondebeard."

"Okay, Captain," Eli said as she pushed him down. "We're going to put you to sleep, okay?" She injected the serum into his IV.

That was when Mark had looked at her with the most pain-filled eyes. "I hope this isn't a dream, doc… Dear God, don't let this be a dream…"

Eli and Chris exchanged glances. Eli took his hand, giving it a squeeze.

"Don't worry, Mark," Chris said as he replaced the IV. "You're safe, you're here. This is real."

Eli gave his hand another squeeze for reassurance, and he weakly gripped hers. "You're alright, Mark. We'll be right here when you wake up."

"Fucking Mars…" Were Mark's words as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"What's his status?" The Commander asked.

The crew were all gathered in the gym-turned-med-bay. Mark was currently asleep, with a blanket covering his body. Various tubes and wires were connected to him, one was for the heart monitor, which gave a soft, steady beat, and the others were for blood and the IV.

Chris nodded at Eli to speak. She took a deep breath. "Well, during the ascent he broke two ribs, which ruptured his spleen. The break happened most likely due to low bone density, and the g forces." She glanced at Mark before continuing. "He went into cardiac arrest about three hours in, probably from the steady loss of blood. We brought back normal heart rhythm with CPR and a defibrillator even before the arrest began, so he'll be fine—no brain damage or any lasting effects. We've managed to seal his spleen, but we'll need to continue his blood transfusion, I hope you don't mind, Vogel."

"It is fine," Alex replied.

"I need you on standby, Johanssen."

"Of course," Beth replied, solemn.

Chris continued. "His ECGs are normal, but his heart rate is too slow, and his blood pressure too low. All other organs are in relatively good shape. Right now, our biggest worry is another cardiac arrest, but this time from the malnutrition." He looked at Eli, passing her the metaphorical baton.

"Right. So, as predicted, he has malnutrition. First order of business is to get him to gain weight. He's been on a low-protein, minimum calorie diet. To not upset his stomach, he'll be eating and drinking broth and soft food for the next couple of weeks, all high-protein, and high-calorie. His spleen will take at least four weeks to heal, and his ribs will take at least six, so I'm calculating that physical therapy can begin in about two months, Mission Day 747-755." She said, reading off of her tablet. "If we keep up with that schedule, we'll be able to get him healthy enough for the Earth descent."

Melissa nodded. "What's your plan to watch him for the first few weeks? While we'd all want Watney back in shape, you two have duties."

"Hutchison's area of expertise is nutrition, and trauma medicine," Chris said. "She and I will both be watching him for the first two weeks. It's the most critical time as of the moment so we both have to be alert and on top of it. She'll be the one mostly in charge of him for the first few weeks after that, with me assisting, so I'll have time for work. After Watney's in proper weight and we've assessed that his physical therapy isn't counterintuitive, Hutchison'll turnover control to me."

Eli nodded in agreement. "So far we've worked out eight-hour shifts. One eight-hour shift each, and then the third will be together."

Melissa's eyes flickered to the table where Mark was. She shook her head. "No, that puts too much strain on you two, it's not good. Figure out a way to distribute it to the other four crew members."

"Uhh," Chris glanced at Eli for a moment. "We could distribute the third eight hours into two hours for each of you four. During that time, we'll be doing life support maintenance, and science experiments. Hutchison and I could do the night and early morning shifts, while we'll leave the afternoon to you guys."

Melissa thought of it for a moment and then nodded. "Alright." She looked at her watch. "First shift starts at eight." Her eyes then flickered to Mark.

Chris noticed. "He'll be fine, Commander."

As they dispersed to have dinner, it was decided that Eli would be watching over Mark for the first night, starting the first shift, with Chris sleeping close by.

"It'll be like having rounds again," he commented as he climbed out of the med bay.

But one of the best parts about being in space was that sleep was pretty regular—which doctors back on Earth did _not_ have. Eli didn't say anything. She waited for Chris to finish dinner and bring his stuff into the med bay, so he could watch over Mark as she had dinner and got her things.

"I'll wake you up if anything happens," she told Chris as he got into his sleeping bag, located in the wall opposite the glass. He had placed his laptop and a thermos beside him. "If not, I'll see you in eight hours."

"Alright," Chris said as he set the alarm on his wrist watch. He lay down and went to sleep.

The first few hours weren't bad. Eli changed his IV, made sure the wound from the blood draining was still sealed and clean (as if there was really any pathogens up here), checked his vitals and made sure they were all stable. The only real challenge was staying awake. Her body just wasn't used to doing rounds anymore, so even with the added kick of coffee, she was still hard pressed to stay awake. At first she had logged all of today's medical happenings, to be sent to NASA with Beth's next transmission, then she replied to all the necessary emails. Then she got really bored, so she decided on standing by the glass window, watching the stars. The fact that thick glass stood between her and certain and instant death didn't bother her as much as it should've—as much as it did when she had first became an astronaut.

It was nearing midnight when Mark began to get restless. His heart rate picked up. Eli, thinking he was crashing, quickly made her way over, but soon realized her mistake. It wasn't cardiac arrest—he was crying.

He looked at her, tears still present.

She gently placed her hand on his arm. "Hey, how are you feeling?"

His lips quivered as he began to smile. "Like shit."

"Well, considering you have two broken ribs, a recently ruptured spleen, and were facing extreme malnutrition, I think shit is an okay way to feel."

She took her stethoscope and started to examine him, with him still laying down. After a few minutes, she placed the stethoscope away.

"You're all stable, for now at the very least," she said. "You're not in any pain, right?"

"I think the Vicodin's still in there," he replied. "How long will the stuff take to heal?"

"Your spleen will heal in four to six weeks, and your ribs'll take at least six weeks," she stated. "The malnourishment will be a bit trickier. But I'll figure it out, so don't worry about it."

"That's nice," Mark said, smiling through his chapped, blistered lips.

"What is? Doing my job?" Eli asked, brows furrowing.

"Not having to worry about dying," he said, smiling getting wider.

Eli could only smile at him—what had she to say to that?

After a few moments of noting things down on her tablet, she put it down and looked at Mark, who had been staring at the ceiling, thinking. "Alright. Let's get you seated so you can eat your dinner. You technically haven't eaten anything in nearly…" she looked at her wrist watch, "…ten hours."

"Oh, nice, finally, some other food that's not potatoes!" He cheered as she helped him sit up, careful not to jostle any of the tubes and wires attached to him too much.

When she had gone to prepare her stuff, she had also made him his broth and soft food. Eli had placed it near the table, so if ever Mark woke up, he'd have something to eat.

"Don't get too excited," she said. "It's just broth and some soft foods. I don't want to risk upsetting your stomach." She handed him the opened thermos, then set beside him, on his uninjured side, a small bowl covered with a plate.

"Ah, shit," Mark sighed after he took the first sip of the broth. "I nearly forgot how Beef Teriyaki tasted… I ran out hundreds of sols ago."

Eli took a seat on a bench that was used for bench presses, she alternated her attention between watching Mark and typing away on her tablet.

"So, where are you from, Hutch?" Mark asked as he placed the thermos down and slowly took the bowl.

Eli looked at him, raising her brow. She spoke after a moment of silence. "I'm from Pittsburgh, originally. But after getting into NASA, I bought myself an apartment in DC."

Mark nodded. "I've been to Pittsburgh. Once. With my parents, of course, mostly when I was younger. Lots of bridges…" he nodded, awkwardly.

"And you? You're from Chicago, right?"

"Born and bred," he stated proudly.

Eli was quiet for a while. She heard the longing in his voice. Of course, as members of the Ares missions, all of them were prepared to not see their families for a fairly long time, of even dying in space. But Mark had been alone—with no other human contact for so long. He had minimal hope, but it was still there, very much present within him.

Quickly, she got to where she had laid her stuff and took her laptop, opening it as she went to him. The area around the table was lit, but the rest of the gym's lights had been closed—they had to decrease energy use because of the reactor's heating issue. She pressed her video recorder application and, once satisfied with the lighting, she stood in front of Mark and turned the laptop around.

"What are you doing?" Mark asked, suspicious.

"Video message," she stated simply. "I'm sure your family would love to see you—I don't think emails would do that kind of message any justice."

He looked at her oddly for several moments before he set the bowl down and reached for the laptop, pressing on the record button.

"Hey, mom. Hey, dad. Uhm… This is kind of weird, I'm not sure what to say…" He laughed, but ended up flinching because of his ribs. "Ah, fuck. Shit, uh, okay…" He looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well, first off, I'm alive—not necessarily alive and well, but I'm working on the 'well' part. Actually, more like Beck and Hutchison are, but anyway. I'm sorry for all the worry I've put you guys through, I'm sure Mom's been giving you shit, Dad, and I'm sure Dad's driving you insane, Mom. Now that I've been rescued, you guys shouldn't worry anymore. At least not too much. I'm looking at you, Mom. I'd be really happy if you guys send me a video message soon, so you guys should go ahead and do that. How are you guys? How's Gus? Is that little rascal still chewing on your shoes, Mom?" He laughed, but once again he stopped with the pain that emanated from his side. "Anyway, while I'd like to talk to you forever, data dump has limits on the data sent over, especially for video messages. I'll see you guys back on Earth, and, it's long overdue, but we'll go straight to Gino's. I love you guys. Bye." He did a little wave before ending the transmission.

Eli smiled and turned the laptop around, storing the video message and sending it to NASA, with a note to send it to Mark's parents. It would be sent as soon as Beth began her transmission. She walked to where her sleeping bag was set up. "Okay, after you eat, you'll need to get back to sleep."

Mark was silent as she returned to his side. He looked at her with a somber expression on his face. "Thanks, Hutch. I really appreciate it."

"No problem, Watney," she said, turning away as she put the thermos and plate down unto the floor. She'd take care of it after waking Chris. She turned back to Mark, helping him lie back down. "Do you think you'd have a problem sleeping?" She asked, pulling the blanket over his body. "I can give you a shot of tranquilizer if not."

Mark slowly shook his head. "I just had a full meal, Hutch. I'm feeling pretty full and tired," he said with a smile. "Besides, I've developed the ability to sleep on command, you know…" He let the word trail as his head lolled to the side.

Eli smiled as she stepped back. Mark's body was still tired and trying to recover from the injuries he sustained in his ascent. She took a seat on the bench, exhausted.

She looked at her watch.

Three hours and forty-eight minutes.

Damn it.


End file.
